Auto-Dimming Rear View Mirror

[DOHCRagtopguy]

I would like to get one of these for my 93 Cutty Ragtop, complete with compass and map lights.

 

Anybody have a clue on interchangeability between makes and years?

 

Thanks in advance.

[TeeJay3800]

I know Sean put one in his Regal. I'm sure he'll see this.

[supreme_style21]

I've put 'em in all my cars. Simple positive/negative hookups. The autodim is supposed to shut up when shifted into reverse, which requires one more hookup, but I've never bothered with it. No year/make/model interchangability issues.

[Guest TurboSedan]

i know Bonnevilles have them. i love mine, and hopefully i'll have one in the Cutlass soon.

[RareGMFan]

If you want compass and self dimming with map lights, you'd have to go with the ugly Donnelly brand ones. Unfortunately, the only Gentex to get all those features were strictly used in the Olds Intrigue GLS, so it will be very difficult to come across one. I've got TONS of other mirrors (Gentex self dimming, self dimming with compass, self dimming with compass and temp single display, self dimming with compass and temp dual display, etc). The only Intrigue GLS one I have is in the AWD STE, and is staying there. But wiring is not difficult at all. A negative, a positive that comes on with ignition, a positive that comes on with dome lights (if you have maplights), and if you feel so inclined, the green wire that disables the self dimming mode in reverse (as was said, no one ever really wires that feature in).

 

There WAS one other type that featured 2 out of 3 of the options you listed. An old school style regular, non-self dimming mirror with maplights, like the ones found in our cars where the map light buttons are under the mirror. In the Roadmasters and Caprices, they had the option of compass on them, as well. But it's not VFD like the newer mirrors. There was just a digital display exactly like a calculator, and a white light shines down on it from inside to make it visible at night. Personally....I think they're pretty ugly.

[GnatGoSplat]

Donnelly mirrors suck! For one thing, their compass is GREEN and doesn't match anything. Another thing, their quality is just crap and their customer support isn't helpful. I paid $180 for a Donnelly lighted compass mirror, and half the electrochromic liquid leaked out. When I tried to get it warranted, they wouldn't honor the warranty because I bought it off Ebay even though it was brand new and came in a Donnelly retail box. They will only honor warranty if it's sold through ONE specific dealer, and if not, you're SOL.

 

I have 2 of the Gentex lighted compass mirrors out of Intrigues. They're kind of cool because the maplights are made of LED clusters. The compass is the perfect color to match all the other Cutlass displays. The Gentex mirrors are also a lot slimmer than the Donnelly mirror. The Gentex mirrors, however, have a pretty sizable flaw: they draw power when the car is off. Not a little power either, but quite a bit. If the car is left alone, the power will drain in about 3-days because the mirror consumes 200mA at all times. I put a relay in mine (they can be opened, but not very easily), and have it shut off the VFD filament when the car is off, that managed to drop standby power consumption to about 80mA so the car can be left alone for about 1-2wks before the power drains. It's fine for a daily driven car. The only reason I didn't have it shut down the mirror completely with the ignition, is the LED domelights won't work with the mirror shut down. The Intrigue powers the mirrors through the BCM which has a 10-minute delay before it cuts all power to the mirror, and it also supplies power to the mirror any time a door handle is pulled, so that's why it doesn't drain power in an Intrigue.

[99RegalGS]

I have a Gentex mirror from a 2003 Tahoe in my Regal.

The mirror has the Dual Display compass/temp, and a passenger airbag indicator. The wiring was very easy. Took 4 wires. Switched Power, ground, and the 2 sensor wires for the temp sensor. The mirror doesn't have maplights though, not a problem for me because mine aren't on the mirror, so it wouldn't be a good canidate for you.

[pwmin]

does anyone else not care for autodimming mirrors? i hardly ever "flip the switch" on mine. i would like some outside mirrors like my riv had (heated, park assist). now that was badass.

[GP1138]

I have one from an Olds Eighty-Eight Delta or somesuch in my car, and I love it. I hate re-adjusting mirrors when I flip the switch, and it drives me nuts because my girlfriend refuses to at night, so the autodim compromises.

[holstbnet]

I love loaded mirrors. The more buttons, the better. I remember when I first saw a Gentex compass mirror in a Tahoe back in high school and I had to have one! I ended up buying it new from GM for some rediculous price because you couldn't find them in the junkyards etc then.

 

Donnelly mirrors DO suck. They are just junk, literally. I put one from a Sebring in my moms 01 Alero. The bright green VFD only matches Fords and nothing else, the autodimming never worked at all, and then finally the fluid leaked out of it. Nice.

 

Then a friend of mine bought a 00 Lincoln LS which had a Donnelly mirror. Fluid leaked out, mirror stopped working. I replaced it with a Gentex from a Blazer.

 

Gentex is the only way to go. They have way more features, look nicer, work properly, etc. I have a Gentex dual line compass/temp autodim in my wifes Neon, a Gentex Intrigue mirror with compass/autodim and LED maplights in my Z26 AND in my moms Alero, and a Gentex OnStar mirror with autodim and compass in my 03 S-10 (due to OnStar swap) The mirror in the truck is going to be replaced with an even more rare one: The Intrigue OnStar autodim compass with LED maplights! Behold!

[supreme_style21]

I love loaded mirrors. The more buttons, the better.

 

Absolutely! There is one on eBay thats always for sale thats got the compass/temp, but its integrated into the bottom of the unit, not in the actual mirror.. and its like electric blue display. And its got a UV level sensor. all kinds of buttons. I'm eventually buying that bugger when I've got 160 bucks to toss out for the hell of it.

[DOHCRagtopguy]

So the general consensus seems to be that Gentex is the best. And I don't really have to worry about plug interchangability because I can hard wire it, is that correct?

 

Are these Gentex mirrors stock in Blazers now or recently, I mean what vehicle should I look for if I go to a J/Y and look around?

 

Sorry if these question seem simple, but I really don't know. One time I rented a Sebring ragtop that had a pretty cool autodim mirror, I don't know if it was a Gentex though.

[1990lumina]

I have a Gentex mirror from a 2003 Tahoe in my Regal.

The mirror has the Dual Display compass/temp, and a passenger airbag indicator. The wiring was very easy. Took 4 wires. Switched Power, ground, and the 2 sensor wires for the temp sensor. The mirror doesn't have maplights though, not a problem for me because mine aren't on the mirror, so it wouldn't be a good canidate for you.

 

I like that mirror!!! If only it had map lights in the bottom I'd ask you where you got it from because I'd spend a fair amount of money on one if it had all those features of yours, plus map lights.

I've always wanted a intergrated compass/temperature/map lights in my Lumina...

 

Anyway, sorry DOHCRagtopguy, that I went off topic

[Guest Anonymous]

I like those old Gentex mirros that had the adjustment slider for the dimmer. it went OFF MIN MAX, almost like my old school HUD dimmer. Anyone have any experience with those? I wanted one for the prix, but would need to change teh backlighting to red.

[RareGMFan]

I've got LOTS of those. My number one eBay sellers. Just need one positive that turns on with ignition, and one negative ground. The ones out of the Bonnevilles were already red.

[RareGMFan]

So the general consensus seems to be that Gentex is the best. And I don't really have to worry about plug interchangability because I can hard wire it, is that correct?

 

Yes, most all of them, the window buttons will match up. Then it's just a matter of hardwiring it. And yes, Donnellys suck. I have heard LOTS of complaints about them leaking from the '97 & up GP guys. I can honestly say I have yet to hear a complaint on the Gentex ones.

 

 

Are these Gentex mirrors stock in Blazers now or recently, I mean what vehicle should I look for if I go to a J/Y and look around?

 

There were quite a few cars, and quite a few types. You'll need to pick out what version you want, first (see my list on my first post in this thread), and from what era (the older style ones that 92Petty mentioned with the OFF, MIN, MAX switches, or the newer style [around '95 & up] with the more rounded out area for the switches). Most of the high end GM trucks came with them, and the blazers in the '95 & up style also had the option. It's becoming far more common place, today (even Saturn's have them, now), but for the older style ones, most top of the line Oldsmobiles, the Bonneville, Cadillacs, etc. The vehicle with the newer style ones, while becoming a bit more available, are still fairly difficult to find in your average j/y. Thus, why they still fetch a decent amount on eBay. If you DO find one, make sure to snag the harness, too, and snip off a decent length of wiring.

 

 

 

One time I rented a Sebring ragtop that had a pretty cool autodim mirror, I don't know if it was a Gentex though.

 

The Sebring one is a Donnelly, but an odd model. It actually features the compass IN the mirror, as opposed to underneath like 99% of them are. The entire design/style of the mirror is different then their typical ones, as well. That mirror was also found in a few of the newer Lincolns.

[GnatGoSplat]

The Donnelly I have has the compass in the mirror too. It's actually an older design. It's a leaky POS, Gentex is much better quality, but it's slim pickin's if you want map lights on the mirror. In a convertible, I can't really think of any other alternative to having the maplights in the mirror.

[Regal_GS_1989]

Theres one on ebay right now. With map lights.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/GENTEX-221-AUTO-DIM-REAR-MIRROR-COMPASS-MAPLIGHT_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ33699QQitemZ8000439368QQrdZ1

[RareGMFan]

That would be the Intrigue GLS version we speak of. That is your ONLY option on the Gentex one to get ALL those features. The last time I sold one of those, I got $188 for it !!! :shock: Gotta' know how to market the damn thing.

[GnatGoSplat]

$188!!! Damn, you're good! I paid $60 for one of mine and $30 for the other, both through car-part.com. The cheaper one was kind of interesting, the mirror body itself is slimmer and it has the lights in little pods.

The seller seems to have forgotten to mention that those mirrors will drain the battery completely down if the car isn't driven for a week!

[RareGMFan]

LOL, he most likely doesn't know that. I certainly didn't before you listed that fact! :shock: And yeah, I'm sure someone on car-parts.com doesn't realize the rarity, or desirablity of that particular model. On eBay, they were going for ~ $150 at their peak. I actually BOUGHT that mirror off eBay for someone else, who saw mine, and wanted one as well. Then he thought $130 for a mirror is just stupid, and asked me to re-sell it for him. So I did, and it went for $188! :shock: The guy that sold it to me (copperZ_71, or something...sells nothing but mirrors) actually e-mailed me to say how impressed he was, and how he's never seen one go for near that much.

 

By the way, both the one I have, and the one I sold had the slimmer style with the pods. I like those way more then the fat ones, which look kinda' ugly to me.

[GnatGoSplat]

Huh, I thought you were the guy that accidentally discovered that those Intrigue mirrors drain the battery. I thought it was someone with both a 6000STE AWD and TGP, but then I guess there are several of you guys here!

Yeah, car-part.com is a good place to look for these mirrors cheap. Those junkyard guys really don't know what they've got.

copper_z71, that's the same guy I bought my Donnelly mirror from that leaked, and Donnelly wouldn't honor the warranty. He's been selling them for years, I think I bought mine back in 00 or 01.

 

The one good thing about the fatter Gentex mirror is the housing snaps together so it can be easily disassembled - good for adding a relay to cut power to the VFD filament so the battery takes 2wks to drain instead of 1! The slimmer mirror is glued together (but can still be opened).

[RareGMFan]

Oh, that was me. But I wasn't sure what was causing it till you mentioned the deal with the mirror. Then I put 2 and 2 together, since nothing else had changed in the car. Yeah, any of the mirrors can be opened. I recently purchased an auto dim compass mirror in the j/y.....which for some odd reason, was taken a part. All the parts were there, just not together.

[supreme_style21]

I like those old Gentex mirros that had the adjustment slider for the dimmer. it went OFF MIN MAX, almost like my old school HUD dimmer. Anyone have any experience with those? I wanted one for the prix, but would need to change teh backlighting to red.

 

Thats the one I have right now. I jacked all of mine from the yards. It certainly looks old school, thats for sure.

 

This is the one I'm dying to get

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/AUTO-DIMMING-MIRROR-W-COMPASS-TEMP-not-Gentex_W0QQitemZ8000449153QQcategoryZ33699QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

[GP1138]

I like those old Gentex mirros that had the adjustment slider for the dimmer. it went OFF MIN MAX, almost like my old school HUD dimmer. Anyone have any experience with those? I wanted one for the prix, but would need to change teh backlighting to red.

 

That's the one I have, and it's pretty nice. I want maplights, though.